Category: Desserts

Peanut Butter-Banana Ice Cream Sandwiches

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Mmmmm… Who doesn’t love peanut butter, chocolate chunks, and a dollop of smooth, creamy ice cream? For Ben’s birthday dessert this year, I made him some of his favorites- scalloped potatoes, ham smothered in in baked beans, and finished it off with these ice cream cookie sandwiches. Peanut butter cookies, of course! They were super easy to make, and were definitely a hit! You can make these with any cookie, really, but this recipe was easier than most!

EASIEST PEANUT BUTTER-BANANA COOKIES:

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter

1/2 mashed up, very ripe banana (I substituted this for one egg!)

Handful of oats (about 3 T. or so)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mash up banana in a medium bowl until smooth and creamy with few to no chunks. Mix in peanut butter, vanilla, and oats until blended. Roll into approximately 1″ balls and place about an inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press tops of the cookies with the back of a fork for that classic criss-cross design. Bake 12-14 minutes. Allow to cool completely and freeze for about thirty minutes.

Makes about a dozen cookies, or a half dozen sandwiches.

To prepare the sandwiches…

When chilled, place a rounded scoop of ice cream (I used Edy’s Slow-Churned Fudge Tracks) on bottom cookie and press together with top cookie. Allow ice cream to squeeze out the sides (this may require a little cleaning up… but no licking!). Sprinkle mini semi-sweet chocolate chips around edges and wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for a few hours before serving.

Claire2 Comments

Very Berry Icebox Pie

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This easy icebox pie recipe always reminds me of summers growing up in CT, on days when no one felt like finishing off a meal with anything but something light and refreshing. This pie makes use of a ready-made graham cracker crust, a combination of Greek and regular yogurts, and light cool whip. Mix it up, pour it into the crust, run a knife through the top to make it look pretty, stick it in the freezer for a few hours, and voila- dessert couldn’t be any easier!

1 8 oz. container lite cool whip
1 ready-made graham cracker crust
2 6 oz. containers Greek yogurt, flavor of your choice (blueberry and vanilla here)
1 tbsp fruit preserves
Fresh strawberries and blueberries, for garnishing

Preheat oven to 375 deg. Bake crust 6 minutes. In a large bowl, mix together yogurt and cool whip until smooth. Fill crust.

Heat preserves 30 seconds or until runny. Pour over top of pie and swirl slowly with a knife.

Freeze at least four hours. Thaw 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh fruit.

Claire1 Comment

Texas Sheet Cake Cupcakes

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 lb butter (2 sticks)
1 cup water
4 tbsp cocoa powder

Frosting:
6 tbsp milk
5 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 cup butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 12-cupcake pans, or line with cupcake liners.

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Beat in sour cream and eggs. Set aside for later.

Melt the butter on low in a saucepan. Add water and cocoa. Bring mixture to a boil, then remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly, then stir butter and cocoa mixture into the flour mixture. Mix until blended.

Pour batter into prepared pan, filling about three-quarters of the way full. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cupcake comes out clean.

For icing: In a large saucepan, combine milk, 5 tablespoons cocoa and 1/2 cup butter. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat. Stir in the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla, then the nuts. Mix until blended. Spread frosting over warm cake.

Makes 20-24 cupcakes.

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Rachel’s Mexican Wedding Cookies

As promised, here is the recipe for those delicious looking powdered cookies in the picture below! Thanks Rachel!

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
21/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts (either pecans or walnuts)
Powdered sugar

Heat oven to 400. Mix butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla. Mix in flour, salt, and nuts until dough holds together (it will be crumbly, but when you form the cookies it should mold together.)

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until set, but not brown, 10 to 12 minutes.

Roll in powdered sugar while warm; cool. Roll in powdered sugar again (I don’t usually roll them again, it’s up to you.) It says it makes about 4 dozen cookies, but it doesn’t make that many. Enjoy!

Claire1 Comment

Mexican Chocolate Brownies

For those who want to add a little spice to their lives!! 😉

Decided to make these for my good friend’s bridal shower- it was Mexican Fiesta themed! This being the first time I’ve attempted brownies from scratch, let alone anything Mexican chocolate-esque, I erred on the side of caution with the spices. That said, I hear that the spices only get stronger the next day! These have cinnamon, chili powder, and a bit of cayenne. Feel free to add more or less spice, depending on how you like it!

Mmmm… spicy! I DEFINITELY recommend this one. ¡Olé! ¡Olé!

Oh, and the Mexican cookies you see in the middle tier there were made by my good friend Rachel. Absolutely delicious. Recipe to come!

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First, start off with melting the butter and chopped dark chocolate in a microwave on high for 30 second increments until completely melted. Don’t let it boil though! Mix with a fork until smooth. Add the cocoa powder slowly and continue to mix until combined.

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In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.

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Pour the chocolate mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Sift in the flour, cinnamon, chili powder, cayenne, and salt until just combined. Don’t overmix! Stir in chocolate chips.

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Spread the mixture evenly into a lightly greased, foiled 8×8 or 9×9 baking pan. Bake at 350 deg for about 30 minutes, until a fork comes out clean in the center (or knife, as you can see from my picture!)

Completely cool before cutting into squares! Serve warm with a scoop of ice cream, or enjoy them by themselves!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3 oz. chopped dark chocolate
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 9×9 or 8×8 baking pan with aluminium foil and lightly grease bottom. In a small bowl, microwave the butter and chopped chocolate until melted, in 30 second increments. Stir with a fork until smooth. Add in cocoa powder and continue to stir until completely blended. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Pour chocolate mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk together till smooth. Sift in flour, cinnamon, cayenne, chili powder, and salt until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. 

Spread evenly in the lined pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until knife in the middle comes out smooth. Cool completely before slicing into squares. ¡Olé!

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Summer Creme Tart “Pizza”

My mom taught me this recipe. It’s especially tasty in the summertime, since it’s a bit lighter dessert. The cream cheese and fruit topping is delectable! It’s a fun, kid-friendly dessert to make, and super easy! Use flavored cream cheese spread if you want, and arrange fruit in a pattern on top (red, white, and blue themed for July 4th, even!) or plop it on randomly like I did here!

Ingredients:

1 large roll of sugar cookie dough (like Pillsbury)

Cream cheese spread

Fruit of your choice! (I used strawberries, kiwi and banana)

Unroll cookie dough and press down evenly into the bottom of a greased cookie sheet or brownie pan. I used a regular 9×9 pan, but you can experiment with a larger pan/sheet if you like a thinner “pizza crust.” 

Bake cookie dough according to package instructions- about 15 minutes or until golden brown on top. Let cool completely. Spread cream cheese evenly over the top of the cookie and top with sliced fruit! 

Cut into pizza-shaped slices or bars, or just eat right out of the pan!

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